The Beer Nut: What's brewing in Wormtown?

Norman Miller

Wednesday

Mar 24, 2010 at 12:01 AMMar 24, 2010 at 7:52 PM

From the outside, you'd never know there is a brewery at 455 Park Ave. in Worcester. It's connected to Peppercorn's Grille & Bar and it used to be an ice cream shop. Now, it's the newest brewery in Massachusetts -- the Wormtown Brewing Company.

From the outside, you'd never know there is a brewery at 455 Park Ave. in Worcester.

It's connected to Peppercorn's Grille & Bar and it used to be an ice cream shop. Now, it's the newest brewery in Massachusetts -- the Wormtown Brewing Company.

The small brewery officially opened its doors on St. Patrick's Day. It's the first brewery in Worcester in more than 40 years, and it takes the name from Worcester's nickname.

"I've always wanted to do something in Worcester," said master brewer Ben Roesch, formerly of the Nashoba Valley Winery in Bolton. "Our goal is for everyone to come down, meet the brewer and actually learn there is a brewery in Worcester."

The brewery is owned by Tom Oliveri, who also owns Peppercorn's and Prezo's of Milford.

Oliveri used to own the ice cream stand in the space that now houses Wormtown Brewing Company, but he was looking for a year-round business. A mutual acquaintance introduced him to Roesch, and that led to the brewery being founded.

The idea of a brewery meshed well with Oliveri's recent business decision to carry only craft beers at his two restaurants.

Worcester's Bravest Ale is a 5 percent alcohol by volume Belgian-style witbier, brewed with orange peel and coriander. That beer is being brewed this week with the assistance of Worcester firefighters, Roesch said.

A portion of the sale of Worcester's Bravest will benefit the Worcester Polytechnic Institute's fire safety lab.

As far as the beer itself, Roesch said it's a good middle ground for the style.

"It's not going to be as spicy as Allagash White (from Portland, Maine), but it'll be more flavorful than Blue Moon (from Boulder, Colo.)," he said.

The Turtle Boy Blueberry Ale is named for the Burnside Fountain in Worcester Common, which is colloquially known as the Turtle Boy.

It is an American wheat beer blended with local blueberries and blueberry concentrate.

The beer itself is one of the better blueberry beers you'll find. Most blueberry beers have a fake taste to them and are overly sweet. This one does not have either of these problems.

Seven Hills Pale Ale is a lighter pale ale than many on the market. But it's still a solid beer and, better yet, it is only 4.5 percent ABV, which makes it a beer you can have a few of without worrying about getting tipsy.

That's the goal of most of Wormtown's beers, Roesch said.

"I'm a big session beer kind of guy," he said. "I like to have beers that (you) can enjoy at the bar and not worry about what your next activity is going to be."

The only beer that is currently being brewed that is a little higher in alcohol is the Be Hoppy IPA, a nice bitter IPA.

"This is a beer for the hop heads," Roesch said.

Currently, Roesch is working on a yet-to-be-named summer beer, kind of a mishmash of several styles -- Kolsch, blonde and golden ales.

Roesch is asking people to go to Wormtown Brewery's Facebook page, become a fan and then suggest a name. The top five names will then be put out to vote on Facebook, with the winner being used as the name.

Roesch also has several beers he plans on brewing, including a coffee stout, an Oktoberfest and a maple brown ale, using local maple.

Currently, Wormtown beer is available on draft at Prezo's and Peppercorn's, as well as the Horseshoe Pub in Hudson and the Dive Bar and Armsby Abbey in Worcester. More bars and restaurants will be added as the brewery gets going, Roesch said.

Growlers, 64-ounce bottles, of Wormtown beers are also available at the brewery from noon to 10 p.m., seven days a week. If the brewery is closed, people can go into Peppercorn's and an employee can get the growler filled.

Growlers will be $5 each. It'll cost between $8 and $10 to get it filled with beer each time.